Carding and forming apparatus



July 13, 1 937. H. R@ WILLIAMS bnDING AND FORMING APPARATUS DriginalFiled July 24. 1928 4 Sheets-Shee'c'l Mum..

l July 13, 1937.

H. R. WILLIAMS CARDING AND lFORMING APPARATUS Original Filed July 24,1928 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 bm QM.

Mr/Samf/W//bm' July 13,- 1937. H. R. WILLIAMS CARDING AND FORMINGAPPARATUS Original Filed July 24, 1928 4 Sheets-Sheet 3 "i libe/22901.

by @my 1 July13, 1937. y H. n. wrLLlAMs 2,086,592

CARDINGvAND FORMING APPARATUS l original Filed July 24, 192e sheets-sht4 Patented `luiy v13, 1937 `CARDING AND FORMING APPARATUS Harrison R.Williams, New York, N. Y.

Original application July 24, 1928, Serial No. 295,102. Divided and thisapplication April 11,

1930, Serial No. 443,423. Renewed August 10,

16 Claims.

This invention relates to the formation of loosely felted fibrousmaterial, the conversion of sheets or Webs of wood-pulp into Webs ofsuch material, and the application of backing webs thereto. Y

In a preferred form of the invention and as illustrated herein acontinuous sheety of wood pulp is fed by a conveyor to a carding roll,and broken up by the carding roll to separate it substantially m intoindividual, unconnected fibers. The broken material is transferred by asuction conveyor and delivered at high speed by the conveyor to aforming belt, and formed into a web, and the web is then provided with abacking web on one or 'both surfaces. j

One feature of the invention relates to means for causing the relativelycoarse particles ofmaterial which survive the carding action to beseparated out and re-subjected to the carding action automatically asmany times as may be necessary to reduce them to the desired degree offineness.

A further feature of the invention relates to the provision of a suctionconveyor between the carding means and the forming conveyor which tapersJ in cross section toward the forming conveyor,

and thereby causes the carded material to be accelerated and deliveredto the forming conveyor at high velocity. 1

A further feature of the invention relates to the provision of means forpositively feeding material disposed on the forming conveyor `out of thesuction box' against the resistance of the external air Y pressure.

Still another feature of the invention relates to the provision ofmechanism for adhesively securing coating or backing webs to the web offelted material, and to the provision of means for preventing theadhesive from getting into the web forming mechanism, and particularlyfrom reaching the forming belt.

appear.

The present application is a division of my pending application SerialNo. 295,102, filed July ing apparatus.

In the drawings forming part of this specification:

Figure 1 is a sectional side elevation of a portion of the apparatusparticularly Iincluding the carding means, the section being taken onthe line I-I of Figure 4; y

Figure 2 is a fragmentary elevation of the finished web havingv thebacking webs applied thereto;

Other objects and advantages will hereinafter I 24, 1928, forImprovements in carding and form Figure 3 is a sectional side elevationof a further portion of the apparatus showing particularly the webforming mechanism and the means for applying the backing Webs thereto,the section rbeing taken on the line 3--3 of Figure 5;

Figure 4 is a plan view of the portion of the apparatus disclosed inFigure 1;

Figure 5 is a plan view of the portion of the apparatus disclosed inFigure 3; and

Figure 6 is a transverse, vertical, sectional View taken on the line 6 6of Figure 3, looking in the direction of the arrows. f

As will be best understood from an inspection of Figure 1, a continuousweb or sheet l of wood pulp is led from a reel 2 onto a belt conveyor 3,which conveyor in cooperation with a feed roll 4 feeds the materialbetween a serrated feed roll 5 and a curved guide 6 for presenting thematerial to a carding roll l which rotates in a clockwise directionwithin a casing 8. In enteringthe casing 8 the material passes betweenthe lower edge of guide 6 and the upper edge of a leather sealing strip9. The carding roll 'l is provided with teeth or bristles l0 whichengage the material as it is introduced into the casing 8, tear it inpieces and.

carry the pieces around with it. An arcuatepresser plate Il which formsa section of casing 8 lies closely adjacent the carding roll and causesthe material to be torn into fine bits so that the fibers are separatedindividually from one another. Some of the pieces of material, however,v

pass the presser plate without being torn up so finely, and as it is notdesired to transmit these relatively coarse pieces to the formingconveyor, provision is made of means for separating such pieces out andturning them back for re-subjection to the carding action. Suchseparating means comprises a brush I2 just above the presser plate iland in proximity to the carding roll, which brush is rotated in aclockwise direction. This brush may be operated at the same angularspeed as the carding roll or the drive gearing may be arranged toprocure any speed relation found to be desirable. As the adjacentsurfaces of the carding roll and the brush move in opposite directions,the brush will be effective to throw outward toward the left therelatively coarse pieces of material engaged by it. Provision is made ofa chute I3 for catching the thrown out material and conducting it bygravity onto the sheet of wood pulp which is being fed to the cardingroll. The material may thus be repeatedly subjected to the cardingaction until it has been reduced to the desired degree o f flneness.

The separating brush necessarily engages and throws outward some of themore iinely divided material, and as it is desirable to retain thismaterial within the casing, the lapparatus is arranged to accomplishthis result.

The casing 8 is provided with an enlargement I4 which surrounds theseparating brush I2 and is spaced a short distance therefrom. The loweredge of this casing enlargement I 4'terminates a short distance abovethe chute I3 so that a restricted outlet opening is provided. The entirecasing has suction applied thereto, as will be more fully explainedherein, so that there is a stream of air constantly entering the casingthrough the restricted opening between the lower edge of enlargement I4and the chute. This incoming air opposes the discharge of the thrown outmaterial, and while it is'incapable of preventing the discharge of therelatively coarse pieces, it is eiective to hold the light, ilnelydivided pieces in the casing.

Due to the rotation of the separating brush in a clockwise direction, acurrent of air isset up in a clockwise direction around the brush I2.This current is strong enough to catch up the lighter -pieces ofmaterial and carry them between the -brush and the casing enlargement I4back to the carding roll atl the upper side of the brush.

The carded material is withdrawn from the casing through a suctionconveyor I l5, which, as will be noted from an examination of Figures 1and 4, is both wide and deep at its intake end andv shallow and narrowat its discharge end. The air drawn through this conveyor is necessarilyl accelerated in passing from the portion oi' large cross section to andthrough the portion of rela tively small cross section, and the air, ofcourse, accelerates the material carried along by it.

The suction conveyor I5 discharges the material into a suction box I6immediately beneath a foraminous. felt forming belt I1 which runstherethrough. The air is evacuated from the suction box through a ductI8, located above the stretch of the belt that runs in the box, so thatthe material discharged in the Ibox is drawn up ward against thelower-face of the belt and caused to adhere thereto. The suction boxcomprises a dome-shaped Wall I9 which lies above the stretch of the beltwithin the boxand extends down into proximity to the belt. The belt isguided upon rollers 20, 2| and 22 .and located outside the suction box.

It has been found that there is a liability of the Adeposited materialon the belt being opposed at the exit opening oitv the suction box bythe external air pressure withA such force that the material isprevented from being fed out ofy the box and is caused to accumulate.adjacent the exit' opening. An important feature of the presentinvention relates to the avoidance of this diiiculty. To this end a rolll23 is mounted closely adjacent the wall I9 of the suction box and asecond feed roll 24, adapted to engage the material from be10W. Smounted directly beneath the exit opening and in opposed relation to theroll 23. The lower section of the suctionlbox lies closely adjacent theroller 24 and has a vertically extending end wall 25 substantiallytangent to said roller.

The roller 24 is rotatably mounted in blocks 26, which are guided forvertical movement by vertical guides 21.` The blocks 26 are urged upwardby a lever 28 which is pivoted at 2S and which carries a weight 29a atthe outer end thereof. The arrangement is such that the roller 24 mayaccommodate itself to varying thicknesses machine.

of the material without impairing the suction in yer for assisting thebelt I1 in conducting the formed web 30 away from the suction box.

As the material is carried from the suction box by belt I1 it liesagainst the belt I1 and is without support from below for a shortdistance. For the purpose of retaining the web to the belt I1, provisionis made of a suction bell 3l which is connected through a conduit 32 tothe same source of suction as the suction box I6. Beyond the suctionbell 3| a strip 33 of paper or other suitable backing material is fedfrom a reel 34 into engagement with lower surface of the web 30.

The paper web 33 is fed over a gumming roller 35 which applies adhesivefrom a gum reservoir 36 to a face of the paper. Thepaper'web passesthence around rollers 31 and 38 into position to to move verticallybetween guides 42 and is yield ingly -pressed upward by a lever 43pivoted at 44 and provided with a weight 45 at the outer end thereof.

Agum sprayer 46 for applying adhesive to the upper face of the web 30 ismounted above the re' ceiving end of table 40. This sprayer comprises ahood 41 through which pipes extend for delivering adhesive underpressure through nozzles 48 onto the web 30. It is important that theadhesive sprayed by the nozzles 48 be prevented from reaching the beltI1 and other parts of the In order to guard againstsuch undesiredoperation the hood 41 is surrounded by a dome 49 which is continuallyexhausted through a conduit 50 by suction apparatus, not shown. As afurther safeguard a protective shieldor screen 5I is interposed betweenthe spraying apparatus and the belt I1, and this shield is supportedbetween vbranches 52 and 53 forming discharge nozzles of a blower 54. Itwill be seen that the adhesive is both 'sucked and blown away from thebelt I1 and that a shield is also provided for guarding the belt I1.

After the web 30 has had the adhesive sprayed upon it, -it continuesalong the table between a feed roller 55 and a cooperative web grippingroller 56. A second paper web 51 is applied to the coated upper surfaceof the web 30 by the rollers 55 and 56. Paper 51 is fed from a reel 58,which reel has the hub thereof mounted between vertical guides 59 withfreedom for vertical movement. 'I'he reel rests upon an endless belt 6I!which is supported directly beneath the reel by a supporting bar 6I. Theendless belt 65 runs upon rollers 64 and 63, the latter of which isadriven roller. llll'he belt 60 and roller 63 are guarded against havingadhesive spread upon them bya shield 65 that depends from the dome 49into proximity to the web 30 on table 40.

From the rollers 55 and 56 the web is transmitted to other operatingmechanism, but as such mechanism does not form a part of the presentinvention, it will not be described herein.

As the web 30 is fed out of the suction box I6 by belt I1, it isintended and desired that the web shall remain in engagement with thebelt `I1 until the roller 22 has been passed, and that beyond that pointthe web shall leave the belt I1. This is the operation that normallyoccurs, but

as the material formingv the web 30 reaches the belt in a nely broken upcondition and is not compactly uniteda considerable quantity of thefibers in'theform of fuzz adheres to the belt-and continues to travelwith it along the upward reverse stretch. Provision is accordingly madeof a by the brush. The suction conveyor 61 connects with the blower 56which discharges in part through a conduit B8. The conduit- B8 leadsrearwardly toward the introductory end of the machine and is dividedinto branches E9 and 10 which discharge into the suction conveyor l5.The fibers removed from the belt I1 by the brush 66 are thus returned tothe system and again conducted to the felt forming belt I1. The brush 66is also effective to break up lumpy formations of the fibers.

The driving means for the various mechanisms described are brieiiy asfollows: A shaft 1I carries pulleys 12 and "i3, the former being looseon the shaft and the latter being fixed thereto, sothat by shifting adrive belt (not shown), between the pulleys the shaft may be renderedidle or active at will; The shaft is connected through a train ofgears14, 15, 15, and11 to drive a sprocket 1B and the latter drives the shaft19, on which serrated roller 5 is mounted, the `driving connectionconsisting of a chain 80 and a sprocket 8l fast onvshaft 19. At theopposite end of shaft 19 provision is made of a pinion 82 which throughgears 83 and 84 drives shaft 85 synchronously with shaft 19. Shaft 85has roller 85 fast thereon and through said roller drives endlessconveyor 3. The conveyor 3 and the roller 5 are thus controlled incommon but the control is independent of the other operating parts.y

Rotary brush I2 is independently driven by a pulley 81, the rotation ofthe brush being in a clockwise direction, as viewed'in Figure 1. The

carding roll 1 is independently driven by a pulley 86. Brush 6G, roller22, and rollers 5t and 55 are also independently driven by suitablepulleys from a common source of power.

.While I have illustrated and described in detail certain preferredforms of my invention, it is to be understood that changes may be madetherein and the invention embodied in other structures. I do not,therefore desire to limit myself to the specific constructionsillustrated, but intend to cover my invention broadly in Whatever formits principle may be4 utilized.

I claim:

l. In a felt making machine, in combination, a suction box, a foraminousbelt running through the suction box, against which air-entrainedmaterial is drawn by the suction, a suction conduit conducting theairentrained material to the suction box, said conduit tapering in crosssection toward the suction box, and means forming an imperforate shieldfor a portion of the belt within the suction box and leaving free only aportion of the belt of no t substantially greater area than the minimumarea of said conduit, to cause the material to be projected against thebelt at high velocity.

2. In a felt making machine, in combination, a foraminous felt formingbelt conveyor and a suction conveyor for conducting air-entrainedmaterial to the forming conveyor, said suction conveyor being taperedtoward the delivery end thereof, and means forming an imperforate shieldfor a portion of the belt within the suction box' and leaving free onlya portion of the belt of not substantially greater area than the minimumarea. of said conduit, to cause the marial to be projected against thebelt at high velocity.`

3. In a felt making machine, in combination, a suction box, a foraminousfelt forming conveyor running from within ,the suction box totheexterior thereof, a suction conveyor conducting airentrained material tothe suction-box, a feeding roller co-acting with the conveyor adjacentthe point of exit from the suction box to feed the material from the boxagainst the resistance of the `air drawn into the suction box throughthe exit opening, and means urging the feeding roller toward ltheforaminous conveyor with light, yieldterial, in combination, a suctionbox having a restricted exit opening for the formed felt, a conveyorrunning from within the suction box to the exterior thereof through theexit opening, a suction conveyor conducting air-entrained ma terial tothe suction box, a roller arranged to assist in sealing the exit openingand to cooperate in feeding the material through said opening againstthe resistance of the external air pressure, and means urging thefeeding roller toward the foraminousconveyor with light, yielding force.

5. In a felt forming apparatus, in combination, a suction box, aforaminous forming conveyor running through the'suction box on which thematerial is deposited, a suction conveyor conducting air-entrainedmaterial to the suction box, a roller for engaging the material on theconveyor adjacent the point of exit from the suction box, means foryieldingly urging said roller toward the conveyor, and means for guidingthe roller in parallelism to theadjacent wall of the suction box and inproximity thereto.

6. In a machine of the kind described, in combination, a foraminous webforming belt, means for conducting air-entrained material to the formingbelt, means for feeding the` formed web away from the belt, means forremoving from the belt such material as remains thereon, and means forreturning such material to the material en bination, a belt for forminga web, means for spraying adhesive on the web, and means for pre-'venting the adhesive from reaching the felt forming belt, comprising ablower interposed between the belt and the sprayer.

8. In a machine of the kind described, in combination, a belt forforming a web, means for spraying adhesive on the web, and means forpreventing the adhesive from reaching the felt forming belt, comprisinga' shield and a blower, both interposed between the belt and thesprayer.

9. In a machine of the kind described, in combination, a belt forforming a web, means for spraying adhesive on the web, and means forpreventing the adhesive from reaching the felt forming belt, comprisinga suction hood surrounding the sprayer, a shield interposed between thebelt and the sprayer, and a blower interposed between the shield and thesprayer.

10. In a machine of the kind described, in combination, a belt forforming a. web, means for spraying adhesive on the web, and means forpretion box, a. foraminous belt running through the suction box andlemerging therefrom through a restricted exit opening, and means forfacilitating the feeding ofthe formed web out of the suction box b'y thebelt, comprising a sucker located outside the suction box adjacent saidexit Opening.

' 12. In a machine for forming a web of loosely felted fibers fromfinely divided fibrous material, incombination, a suction box, a webforming belt running therethrough and adapted to have the fibersdepositedl upon its lower surface, and suc- .tion means outside saidsuction box for holding the formed web to the beltafterit has emergedfrom the suction box.

13.` In a felt making machine, in combination, o. suction box, aforaminous -felt forming conveyor running from within the suction box tothe exterior thereof, a suction conveyor conducting air-entrainedmaterial to the suction box, a feeding member having an endless surfaceco-acting with the conveyor adjacent the point of exit from the suctionbox to feed the material from the box against the resistance of the airdrawn into the suction box through the exit opening, said feeding memberbeing urged bodily against said foraminous conveyor 'with a light,yielding force.

14. In a machine for making a web of loosely felted wood pulp, means forconverting a sheet oi.'

wood pulp into substantially individual, unconnected fibres, aforaminous conveyor, means for delivering the said fibres at high speedto such conveyor and forming a web of such fibres thereon, said meanscomprising a suction box for applying suction through said conveyor tosaid fibres, and feeding means having an endless sur.- face andco-acting with the conveyor adjacent its point of exit from the suctionbox to feed the material from the box against the resistance of airdrawn into the suction box through the exit openir, said feeding meansbeing urged bodily against said foraminous conveyor with a light,

yielding force.

15. In a machine for making a web of substantial thickness of looselyfelted Woodpulp fibres, means for converting a sheet of woodpulp intosubstantially individual, unconnected fibers, a foraminous conveyor,means for delivering said fibers to such conveyor and forming a web ofsuch fibers thereon, said means comprising a suction box adjacent saidconveyor for applying suction through said conveyor to said fibers tocom-vl pact the fibers into a web of substantial thickness on saidconveyor, and meansvhaving an endless surface and coacting with theconveyor adjacent its point of exit from the suction box to' feed thematerial from the box against the resistance of air drawn by the suctionbox through the exit opening, said last-mentioned means be ing urgedbodily against said foraminous conveyor with a light, yielding forcewhereby substantial compression of the web'is avoided.

16. The method of fabricating an unwoven fibrous band; comprising thestep of entraining fibrous components in a conveyor stream of air inafirst zone, imparting to'said fibre-carrier stream a velocity' adequateto elevate 4the entrained fibres against the force of gravity, and

simultaneously to impact the fibres; causing a;

HARRISON R. WILLIAMS.

